Box Score Gage Heffernan scored 18 of his game-high 28 points in the second half to lead the University of Dubuque to a 77-68 victory Saturday night over Colorado College in the championship game of the 2014 CC Thanksgiving Invitational at Reid Arena.
 
Heffernan, the tournament's Most Valuable Player, made a free throw then collected a steal and breakaway dunk to put the Spartans (5-0) ahead 68-61 with 3:35 left in the second half. CC freshman Eric Houska nailed a three-pointer, then stole the inbounds pass, was fouled and made both free throws to cut the lead to 68-66 with 2:59 remaining.
 
Dubuque's Brandon Ferguson made one of two free throws and Heffernan put in a short jumper after a scramble for a loose ball for a 71-66 lead with 1:14 left. The Spartans then made all six of their free throws in the final minute to seal the victory.
 
Houska led the Tigers (3-4) with 15 points and five steals, while Mitch Carter, Russell Clark and Chris Lesnansky each poured in 14 points.
 
Heffernan, who was 9-of-14 from the field and 9-of-10 from the line, also grabbed nine rebounds and had a game-high six steals. Teammate Andre Norris grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds, while Ferguson added 11 points and eight rebounds.
 
The Spartans outrebounded CC 45-28 and collected 15 offensive boards. Dubuque shot 47.3 percent from the field (26-of-55) and held CC to 41 percent (25-of-61), including 4-of-16 from three-point range.
 
Dubuque jumped out to an early 13-2 lead just three minutes into the game behind six straight points from Heffernan. The Tigers responded with a 12-0 run of their own over the next three minutes, sparked by six points from Clark, to take a 14-13 lead.
 
The teams exchanged baskets and were tied at 20-all with just under nine minutes remaining in the half  when Dubuque scored six straight points. However, Clark hit a jumper and Houska made two layups to even it up at 26 apiece with three minutes left in the frame. Heffernan and Clark each had 10 points in the first half as Dubuque took a 33-31 lead into intermission.
 
Colorado College is idle until Dec. 16, when the Tigers host Johnson & Wales University.
 
In the third-place game, Brandon Luedtke and Brendon McCullough led four players in double figures as Willamette rallied from a seven-point halftime deficit to beat the University of Northwestern, 71-64.
 
Luedtke, who was selected to the all-tournament team, led the Bearcats with 12 rebounds and collected a game-high six steals. Nico Troplent had 15 points and Bridger Harlington chipped in with 12 as Willamette shot 50 percent (12-of-24) in the second half and outscored UNW 37-23 in the final 20 minutes.
 
Caleb Janson pulled down a game-high 17 rebounds and had four steals, while Porter Morrell had 11 points and five assists for Northwestern.
 
Most Valuable Player
Gage Heffernan, Dubuque
 
All-Tournament Team
Andre Norris, Dubuque
Eric Houska, Colorado College
Brandon Luedtke, Willamette
Michael Carney, Northwestern